I am supposed to be getting a Kindle next week and have started poking around the Kindle Store on Amazon. I've gotten lots of great info from this board so far, and I have just a couple of questions.

1) The Kindle Store talks about Kindle gift cards. Can you use regular Amazon gift cards to purchase ebooks or do they have to be Kindle gift cards?

2) I'm finding all sorts of free books already just on Amazon that I want. Can I put Kindle for PC on my computer now and download them, and then they'll be ready to go onto the Kindle when I get it? I'll be away when I get it, and possibly not have wireless access, but my laptop goes everywhere with me. Does it work this way? Is Kindle for PC what I'll use to get the books onto the Kindle? Or is it some other program?

3) Has anyone had luck finding foreign language books anywhere? Does Amazon have a wide selection? I didn't see a category for this but I could've missed it. I did a search for one book in particular, and it's not available in Kindle format (I am sorely disappointed. Le Petit Prince is a comfort book for me that I turn to frequently, and my copy recently got ruined. They don't even have it in English.) But it got me thinking there are a couple of other books I would prefer to read in French. Any good resource for foreign language books?

I can't answer all of your questions, but I can help with at least a couple.

1. Kindle gift cards are the same as Amazon gift cards, they just have the Kindle logo on them. You can use both to purchase books for your Kindle. I do it all the time.

2. It's been a while since I got my Kindle, but I did start with the Kindle PC first and IIRC the books I had loaded on the Kindle PC were all on my Kindle when it arrived...although they may have been in the archive section. I don't really recall right now. I don't have the wi-fi so I can't answer that part. But I do know that you do not have to load books on to the Kindle for PC before putting them on the Kindle. You can sideload the books on from your computer (using the USB to get the books to the Kindle) but the books can be stored in any folder you want (mine is labeled Ebooks). You then just open the document folder on the Kindle and drag and drop the books from your computer folder to the Kindle folder.

1. regular Amazon gift cards can definitely be used to buy Kindle books.

Kindle gift cards are the same as Amazon gift cards, they just have the Kindle logo on them.

interesting. in addition to the regular Amazon gift cards, Amazon does sell gift cards for specific types of products - Kindle, mp3, video on demand, and software/games downloads all have their own gift cards. i know that if you get an mp3 gift card, it can only be used to buy mp3's, but it looks like if you get a Kindle gift card it can be used for other products.

2. by all means, download Kindle for PC now and start grabbing the freebie books! some of them are limited time only, so snag them while they are available. when your Kindle arrives, you'll be able to load the books you already own onto it in a couple of ways. if you've got a connection available (wifi or 3G), then you can just go to the Archive folder on your Kindle, select the book, and it'll download to the Kindle.

if you don't have that connection, but need to load it via your computer, then you log into your amazon account, go to Manage Your Kindle and click on your book in the list down at the bottom. it'll expand, and there's a thing that says "No wireless coverage?" and a button for 'Download to computer". that's how you get the files to your computer (not Kindle for PC), and then you can copy them to your Kindle via the USB cable as Heather mentioned.

I purchase email gift cards (usually around 15.00 at a time) and email them to myself, then input the codes into my account. This way, my bank account is not littered with .99 cent charges all over the place (when I purchase bargain books).